Field hospital training under way at NEMA compound
Health workers, soldiers and disaster officials are practising how to assemble a 40-bed field hospital donated by the United States.
BASSETERRE, St Kitts. Health workers and disaster management staff began three days of training on Wednesday in setting up a field hospital at the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) compound.
The exercise builds on October 2021, when two 40-bed field hospitals donated by the United States Government, one for St Kitts and one for Nevis, were first assembled.
Participants are working through the full sequence of setting up the facility, from unpacking the shelter and assembling floor panels to raising the tent structure and installing equipment and lighting. Each field hospital has four wards, with divider curtains, bathrooms, air conditioning and a generator.
The training is led by Allister Thompson of the Public Works Department in Nevis and involves the Institutions-Based Health Services disaster management team, nurses, orderlies and maintenance staff from the JNF General Hospital, along with the St Kitts-Nevis Defence Force, NEMA and the Public Works Department.
"Readiness is built through practice," said Lindsey Maynard, Director of Operations at Institutions-Based Health Services.
National Disaster Coordinator Livingston Pemberton said hands-on training with partner agencies builds confidence and coordination ahead of any emergency. The training runs until Friday.
